Best Buy, Home Depot and Lowe's all have a new sales pitch for aging baby boomers: don't do it yourself -- let us do it for you.

It makes sense if you think about it. For years the retailers have reaped profits helping Americans hell bent on the DIY craze. But now, with more and more Boomers creeping past 50, the retailers are betting on the Do It For Me model -- that instead of climbing a ladder to install a new ceiling fan, homeowners would rather pay someone else to do it.

Morningstar analyst Anthony Chukumba said he's not surprised. With the first baby boomers turning 60 next year, Chukumba said the appeal of DIY projects is fading.

"They're still buying the materials at a Home Depot but they're more likely to want to hire someone" to do things like redo the driveway, install new windows, change the carpeting or repaint the house, he said. Rather than pick a "no-name" contractor, he said, "they would much rather go with a brand they already know and trust."

So Home Depot (Research) and Lowe's (Research), the No. 1 and No. 2 players in the do-it-yourself home improvement arena, as well as a few other retailers, are all selling services aimed at the do-it-for-me market.

Industry observers point out that the 77 million baby boomers in the country represent a lucrative market for big-box retailers repairs to asphalt driveway like Home Depot and Lowe's to tap into as they strive to keep growing their profits and sales.

But in order to get to them, it's not enough for retailers to simply sell a product. "They need to market an experience," Ed Kerschner, chief investment officer with Smith Barney Citigroup, told reporters at a media luncheon earlier this month.

To that purpose, Atlanta-based Home Depot has rapidly expanded the breadth of installation services offered to customers over the past five years.

"Right now we have 24 services. We recently added painting to the list," said Jerry Shields, spokesman for Home Depot.

Home Depot doesn't break out the figures for each segment, but in its last quarterly report, the retailer said the company's do-it-for-me services business grew 20.4 percent in the fourth quarter and 28 percent last year. And it expects that type of growth to continue, easily outpacing the 9 to 12 percent annual growth in sales of core products.

Shields declined to say how much revenue the retailer drew in last year from home services. But he estimated that the total market for such services could be huge, about a $110 billion market.

Mooresville, N.C.-based Lowe's currently offers 40 categories of home services and expects home installation sales to reach $2.5 billion by the end of its current fiscal year, up from $1.5 billion in 2003.

"This area has twice the rate of sales growth compared to our traditional business," said spokeswoman Chris Ahearn. Services also typically are a higher margin business for retailers.

Other retailers, such as electronics seller Best Buy have jumped on the service bandwagon as well.

Last month, Best Buy (Research), the No. 1 electronics chains, said it would expand its in-home technical support service, dubbed the "Geek Squad" into stand-alone service centers, opening 20 to 50 such how to build a concrete driveway step by step stores by early next year.

"We've found that our women clients typically want a technical problem solved as quickly as possible," said Sean Skelley, senior vice president of services with Best Buy. "It's slightly different with baby boomers. They want to spend time with the technicians and get an education."

Aging Amercians aren't the only ones seeking more services, said Bill Sims, analyst with Smith Barney.

"The do-it-yourself market is maturing and reaching saturation," he said. "In order for Home Depot, Lowe's and Best But to continue to improve sales, they have to look to new markets."

Morningstar's Chukumba agreed. "New growth drivers are more of an issue for Home Depot than Lowe's. Lowe's domestically still has about half the sales of Home Depot. To some extent, Home Depot's growth opportunity is limited in the U.S. where it already has nearly 2,000 stores."

So is it time to say RIP (Rest in Peace) to D-I-Y?

Not so fast, said Lowe's Ahearn.

"We're not replacing DIY with DIFM by any means," Ahearn said. "What we're doing is broadening our DIY model to include the do-it-for-me category."

But regardless of age, some consumers will always opt to go DIY, either for financial reasons or because they enjoy the hands-on experience, said Candace Corlett, retail analyst with retail consultancy WSL Strategic Retail.

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It goes without saying that the punishment for driving under the influence in California, and across the United States for that matter, continues to increase significantly thanks to the hypervigilance of Mothers Against Drunk Driving and like organizations.

So what are the current penalties for a California DUI conviction?

The following is a list of what a person can expect if arrested and convicted of a first-time California DUI. It should be noted that penalties and punishment increase beyond what is listed below when a person has suffered prior DUI convictions within 10 years. The following is what can be expected out of a first-time conviction only.

The first thing a person can expect are the fines and fees. The statutory minimum fine that a person must pay following a California DUI is $390. The maximum is $1,000. Absent aggravating circumstances such as a collision, a person can expect $390. However, in addition to the $390, a person can expect to pay "penalties and assessments," which will bring the overall amount to about $2,000, give or take a few hundred. I can't tell you exactly what "penalties and assessments" means. In fact, I've heard judges say that they don't know what it means. Suffice it to say, they are akin to court taxes.

When convicted of a California DUI, a person will be placed on summary (informal) probation for a period of three to five years. Again, absent aggravating circumstances, a person should expect the lower term of three years. Informal probation simply means staying out of trouble and doing what the court ordered. This includes not picking up any new cases, DUI or otherwise, not driving without a valid license, and not driving with any measurable amount of alcohol in the system. During the probationary period, a person must also complete the terms associated with that probation. This includes paying all fines and fees, completing a DUI program, and completing any other conditions the court might order.

The last of the penalties that are required by law is the requirement that a person complete a DUI program. For a first-time California DUI, a person is facing a three-month, six-month, or nine-month program. Like the probation and fines, the longer programs are given when the facts surrounding the DUI include aggravating circumstance. Otherwise, a person can expect to complete the three-month program called AB-541.

The aforementioned are what a person can expect by law. There are, however, other penalties which are not mandated by law, but rather discretionary.

If arrested and convicted of a California DUI, a person can be ordered to complete a "Hospital and Morgue Program." The program is self-explanatory and is, in my opinion, the most unpleasant of the penalties. Participants in this program must first visit the hospital and listen to doctors explain the negative consequences of drinking and driving. Then the person must visit the morgue or coroner's office and view the bodies of victims of drunk driving. Following the completion of both the hospital component and the morgue component, the participant must write an essay on their experience.

Another discretionary punishment for a California DUI is a Mothers Against Drunk Driving Victim Impact Panel. This is a one-day lecture hosted by the group where victims of drunk drivers speak on the impact that driving under the influence has had on their lives.

The court may order a person to complete a number of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings. As many people know, AA meetings are hosted by the non-profit organization for the purpose of "stay[ing] sober and help[ing] other alcohols achieve sobriety."

Lastly, the court can order a person convicted of a California DUI to install an ignition interlock device (IID). An ignition interlock device is essentially a breathalyzer that is installed into the ignition of a person's vehicle. The device will not allow a person to start their vehicle unless they provide a breath sample free of alcohol. It should be noted that, by law, the DMV already requires the installation of an IID for five months in four California counties; Alameda, Tulare, Sacramento, and Los Angeles.

Again, this is what is commonly ordered and what can be expected. The courts have great discretion as to what can be given as punishment for a California DUI including the unexpected. Believe me, prosecutors are currently pushing for as much punishment as possible and this is precisely why it is extremely important to hire an experienced California DUI attorney if arrested on suspicion of a California DUI.